Chapter 24: The Hundred Beasts Insect
The demonic energy and toxins that the Demon-Refining Gourd absorbed daily seemed to vanish without a trace. Yet, the space inside the gourd continued to expand, and its refining speed grew ever faster. Ji Xun surmised that these energies were being used to strengthen the gourd itself.
Not far away, the black bear spirit placed the beehive on the ground and dove into the water, soon resurfacing with two large fish in its arms. Evidently, it had come to trust both Ji Xun and Da Huang. The man, the bear, and the dog enjoyed another meal of grilled fish together.
...
That night, back at the thatched cottage, Ji Xun broke off a piece of honeycomb and handed it to Da Huang. He figured that, no matter how poor Da Huang’s innate talent had been, this time the dog would surely transform into a demon. After all, the honeycomb was a great treasure.
[Golden Armored Beehive: Profound Grade, Medium Quality. Contains copious amounts of pure spiritual energy, capable of detoxifying and strengthening the body, with certain benefits for cultivation.]
Ji Xun broke off another piece, placed it in his mouth, and soon it was digested by the stomach of the Ba Snake within him, releasing a flood of pure spiritual energy throughout his body. At the same time, he gripped a spirit stone in his hand, drawing out its energy and steadily advancing his cultivation.
...
Life in the village was exceedingly peaceful. The winter conscription, an annual occurrence, did not take place this year. The villagers, unaccustomed to idleness, had consequently turned in considerable numbers to the Sanyang Sect. The Serpent Kingdom placed little restriction on such grassroots organizations; if trouble ever arose, the military would swiftly suppress it, and those involved would be thoroughly purged afterward. Such groups never posed any real threat—no matter how chaotic the power struggles within the Serpent Kingdom became, organizations that appealed to the poor were simply beneath notice.
Yet Ji Xun couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something deeply wrong with the Sanyang Sect, though he couldn’t recall exactly what.
One day at noon, Old Master Lin called him over unexpectedly.
“Dali, your ten years of forced labor must be nearly finished, right?” the old man asked.
“They’re already over,” Ji Xun replied.
“That’s good. I’ve found you a job—Master Mo in town owns quite a bit of farmland, and he often leases it out. Now that you’ve been reclassified as a commoner, why not consider renting a plot? You’d farm it yourself and keep the harvest—there’s good money in it each year.”
Ji Xun thought it over and found it quite reasonable. After all, he and the black bear spirit had already scoured the outer forests; few spiritual creatures or savage beasts remained. As for the depths of the forest, the monsters there were beyond his current strength.
He had heard of Master Mo in town—a pure-blooded human who, in his youth, had risen to the unprecedented rank of seventh-grade official. At sixty, he’d retired unexpectedly and returned to his ancestral grounds, amassing considerable property and enjoying a life of accomplishment. Under Master Mo’s direction, the town had developed many trade routes, finding steady buyers for local specialties.
...
Master Mo was known for his kindness toward humans. Many of his fields were spiritual plots, and he employed people to grow medicinal herbs such as Hundred Beast Ganoderma, Thousand Beast Ginseng, Amethyst Flower, and Golden Phoenix Wood. The Mo family businesses even extended to the county, and several branches operated in the province as well. Renting a plot in town would at least provide Ji Xun with a temporary foothold. If he later found a better opportunity, he could simply move on—it would be like riding a donkey while searching for a horse.
He asked Old Master Lin for more details. It turned out that, in his younger days, Lin had worked for the Mo family as well, but after falling gravely ill, he had returned to the village to retire. This explained how Lin had come to know the rabbit-eared old apothecary.
Ji Xun guessed that Old Master Lin had spent quite a bit of demon silver on his behalf.
“Alright, then. In a month, once my status is officially changed, I’ll go to Master Mo and rent a field,” Ji Xun said.
Before leaving, he left behind a small jar of honey—a blend he had made by melting down the honeycomb and mixing in regular honey.
...
A month would surely be enough time for Qu the Skinner’s son to return. If, upon coming back, the man still dared to cause trouble in the village, Ji Xun would deal with him personally.
That night, Da Huang began to howl again. Ji Xun sat up, waiting for someone to come to the door. Hearing the heavy panting outside, he realized this time it was the black bear spirit.
“Old Black, what brings you here so late?” he asked, opening the door. The black bear spirit began to draw on the ground. When it finished, Ji Xun could hardly believe what he saw—a sketch of a nest of Hundred Beast Worms.
He had previously given the bear one such worm, asking it to keep an eye out while foraging in the forest. Ji Xun had always suspected that in winter, the Hundred Beast Worms might not be found in the fields.
He hadn’t expected the black bear spirit to be so efficient. If he could refine a large quantity of Hundred Beast Blood, perhaps he could forge a new divine ability.
“Let’s go—take me there.”
...
They arrived at the location, and Ji Xun lit a firestarter, then stepped into a cave. The entrance was wide enough even for the black bear spirit to pass through. Deeper inside, Ji Xun saw dozens of brightly colored worms tangled together.
“One, two, three, four...”
There were over fifty Hundred Beast Worms.
“We’ve hit the jackpot,” he whispered.
Ji Xun had the black bear spirit block the entrance, then circulated the Hundred Beast Blood within himself, mimicking the bloodline of a crane demon. Taking on a crane’s form, he rushed in. As the worms lunged at him, he deftly plucked one up and tossed it into the Demon-Refining Gourd.
The next instant, however, he sensed several surges of demonic energy ahead. With a metallic clang, his right hand went numb from the impact. Instantly, he shifted from crane-form to tiger-form, unleashing a series of fierce blows. Although he couldn’t see perfectly in the dark, he could make out rough shapes, and the gourd’s sensitivity to demonic energy guided him. He sensed several worms that had already reached the ninth rank or higher.
“How could this be?” Ji Xun was baffled. The records he’d read all agreed: Hundred Beast Worms had such poor bloodlines and mixed ancestry that they could never become true demons, not even formidable beasts. Yet here were multiple worms that had already attained rank.
Ji Xun’s own demonic energy shared the same origin as the worms’, allowing for mutual infiltration. The largest worm was a full yard long—likely a seventh-grade cultivator in the Profound Realm, two grades higher than Ji Xun himself. His energy alone couldn’t stop it; he’d have to rely on his physical strength.
If the battle continued, even if he and the black bear spirit managed to lure the worms out, victory would be hard-won, and both of them might suffer grievous injuries.
With that in mind, Ji Xun withdrew from the cave. Suddenly, he recalled the insect-catching spirit tongs he’d acquired from the village head.
[Insect-Catching Spirit Tongs (Damaged): Profound Grade, Low Quality. A spiritual tool specialized for catching Hundred Beast Worms, not suitable for combat.]
“It seems I’ll need to bide my time.”
...
Ji Xun left the cave.
Over the following days, he pored over a book titled “True Explanation of Spiritual Tools,” examining the tongs closely. He soon identified the damaged part—the tip. Using the beak of the blue-feathered spotted finch he’d obtained earlier, he refined it in the Demon-Refining Gourd, shaping it into a new tip cover. The bird’s beak was too small for most uses, but as a sheath for the tongs’ tip, it fit perfectly.